Well this has been an interesting week. We finally wrapped up our orientation period today and we are starting Sarah Lawrence classes next week. I finally settled on a politics class on Immigration in France. Reasons being, A: with experiences with the art history teacher on our tours, although i'm sure she's a wonderful teacher and person, I just wasn't really digging the art history thing. Her specialty wasn't on a period I'm particularly interested in and it seemed like a lot of sitting in a dark room with a projector looking at slides, which isn't something I'm looking for. However, this immigration class seems to fit for several reasons. A: Immigration is a very pertinant issue in both France and USA, so I feel like I should be well educated in that subject. B: the way the class is set up, I think that it will incorporate well with the philosophy and literature courses I've taken at SLC already and, hopefully, frame those ideas and theories in a practical context. First class is tomorrow! Will report on that class next week.
However, during this orientation period we have been having french classes. Our teacher is very french, and very awesome. She gave an example on how to use articles while at the same time telling us the best way to make a good fish soup. It was incredible. On Wednesday she took us to a french open air market, which are everywhere, and had us look around and watch french people in action. It was interesting to watch her interact with the vendors. I don't know if this because i'm american of just because I have amisconstrued sense of manners, but if i'm at an open air market like that, I don't like to talk to the vendors because it seems that I'm just being rude to talk to them when i'm not actually going to buy anything. however, Mme Bendelien would talk to the vendors and taste things and then go on her way. the vendors didn't seem to have a problem with that! In fact, they all really like her at the markets that she goes to.
Cultural lessons aside, this market was awesome! There was one like it in Provence too (Pictures soon! there are some up from my Provence trip now, but there are more coming!) and they are just really cool places. Sights, smells, sounds, tastes. There are things from all over France. Produce is really cheap there too. you can buy a good amount of fresh peaches for perhaps a little over a euro, and the ones I had were AMAZING. You know, that perfect consistency where it's not too soft when you hold it, but then when you bite into it the juices just explode in your mouth? Amazing.
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This past Saturday was a really cool experience. We went to the Grand Opèra Garnier to see three ballets by Roland Petit. First of all, the Opèra Garnier is one of my favorite buildings in Paris. It's an architectural master piece and it's so gorgeous. We had gone on a tour the day before and had some of the things explianed to us, however, this tour was probably one of my most unpleasant experiences of my trip so far.
Well, I should preface this by saying that I am extremely grateful because we got an ALL ACCESS TOUR. The parts that were focused on the building were super cool because we got to see all the parts that most tourists don't get to see. You know the lake below the opera house, where the phantom is supposed to live? Saw it. We also got to see the old fly system (I took pictures, Teri) and we also got to go on the stage!! Really cool!
However, those things took up about 2 and a half hours MAX. We were there for at least 4 hours. The other parts of it were spent in dark ugly rooms in the opera library listening to a guy show us drawings from the ballets that this person had done in the past.
Ok, I also realize that this was really cool because we were looking at ORIGINAL sketches from the choreographer for the ballets we were seeing the next day. However, my primary interest was the building and all 17 of us were crammed into a tiny little room with no seating for at least an hour with this person. It was just not a good mix. Then we went to listen to a guy who I think is some cultural official for dance, I don't really remember, and he basically gave us a lecture. At that point in the day I had basically given up. He was speaking in french so quickly and so softly his voice just sounded like a gentle hum in my ear. I honestly barely remember a thing. It was just a bad execution of a really cool idea.
BUT
the Ballet the next day made up completly for the day before. The first piece was called Le Rendez-Vous and it was quite strange. It was very charactureish and I got a sense of Commedia delle arte (sorry if I horribly misspelled that) from it. It was very architypical. The second piece was called Le Loup or The Wolf. the story was that a man cheats on his wife with a gypsy and in order so that his wife won't find out, the gypsies make a wolf and turn him into a man and he goes back to the first man's wife as a ruse so he can go off and make sexy time with his gypsy mistress. However, with their time together, the wolf man and the wife fall in live, despite him being a wolf creature. But then all the humans become rather upset and chase them through the forest and eventually corner the girl and the wolf man. As they are about to kill the wolf she jumps into the way of the spear and is killed along side her love. Very beautiful and really well done, but it both of the first dances pale in comparison to L'homme et Mort
this piece translates to Man and Death. There are only two people in this ballet. The first section is a long, difficult solo pieces with the man dancing. There was a sense of longing, and despair in his movements. then a woman enters and they do a very sensous duet. then the woman prepares a noose and leaves. The man hangs himself and then there is an amazing scene change and then we see him walking off with the woman. The whole piece was done to Bach music and it just beautifully works together. Absolutely wonderful.
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Mentioning food earlier reminds me of another change that's been going on. I'm cooking for myself a lot more. Mainly our of necessity, but it's fun! It's fun to try new things. Like, for instance, I made hoppin' johns (a very nice beans and rice dish) with tomatoes mixed in with the beans the other day and it was quite lovely. I'm exploring all the ways I can combine tabouleh, lettuce, and other leftovers I happen to have. Fight now, after cooking a small dinner for myself (at 11 at night, oh how European I am!) I have a huge tupperware of pasta left over that I'll have to do something with...hmmm the mind begins to turn. Also I have a bag of potatoes that is just sitting in my closet waiting to be used for something.
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Something I've noticed living here is that I love walking here. It's possibly the best walking city because no matter where you go there is always something interesting. For example, and this is an extreme example but if i hadn't been walking I never would have seen it, one day I was walking back to the big train station from the Opèra and I basically stumbled upon a string orchestra playing in the middle of this plaza. They were't phenomenal, but they were really good, and you could tell that they were having a really great time playing for everyone. Earlier in that same plaza, when I was walking to the Opèra, we walked what seemed to be a gathering of deaf people who all spoke sign language. It was like a sign language party. It was really interesting to be surrounded by a language withing a language, both of which were foreign to me.
Walking also helps my navigation skills. I've developed a really good sense of the streets because I've walked a good deal of them by now. There are still tons more left to explore, but I've fairly throughly explored my main territories. I also can read a map very well now.
____________
Well everyone, getting late again. I'm not sure why I save these entries until the wee hours of the morning, but it's pushing 2 here and I have class tomorrow. So bon soirée to you all and I will see you next week!
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Monday, September 20, 2010
the Aix chapter: I actually like of want this provincial life
so sorry for not posting yesterday, we just got back from a wonderful trip in provence this past weekend and I was très fatigué.
I think, instead of making up for all of the days I missed from the start of orientation, I will just start at the night before we left this past weekend. But, basically, we have begun our french classes now, my teacher is really cool and good. We've already done 2 oral projects and we have our first test this coming thursday. Other than that, orientation was't anything more than a lot of meetings and your typical orientation affair.
So, this past thursday night
I was planning on coming home, cooking a nice quiet meal and perhaps snuggling up with my laptop and watching youtube videos (yes, I do not have ANY dvds or means to watch actual movies because Netflix does not work at all. c'est dommage) however, right as I had finished preparing my pasta sauce, about 6 or 7 people walked in and began to prepare their own feast ( I had already taken all of my stuff off the stove, and was sitting at the table) I began to talk with them and it turns out they were all seniors from Georgia Tech in the architecture department here for a semester long program. All really nice people so we start eating together and drinking together and we had a good time. Plus, my friend Samantha showed up too so there was some mingling between SLC people and others. Later that night too, two of the GT guys, Samantha, and I met this really nice french artist who lives in the same dorm as us and we got to go up to his artist loft on the 5th floor and see his work. Really amazing stuff. he finds it hard to understand english, but he wants to learn so he can study in new york so we made a deal that I would only speak in french to him and he would speak in english to me so we could both practice. Lots of fun that night
Then (bum bum buuuum) the next morning we hopped over to Gare de Lyon and nous sommes allé au Provence.
We stayed in a city called Aix-en-Provence. very old and beautiful buildings. Lots or Oranges and Yellows on the walls and buildings. Paul Cezanne worked and lived in this area and there were a lot of things that were named after him there. We heard that Cezanne really liked a ocher, orangy color and you can understand why when you look around there. The buildings all have this orangey brown yellow color to them and they are so beautiful when the sun hits them. Also, the dirt in the surrounding area is a rich red clay which also has that same color tone.
We saw about every single church in that city. There was one that was built by the romans at first and then had several different architectural styles added on as the cathedral was built. the cloister of that place was really quite wonderful as well. all of the carvings in the wall had a little story to them (by the way, all of the things I describe will have photos once I can get a strong enough internet connection to upload them all)
After walking all over creation, we had some free time. It was during this time that I FINALLY found some blues music. I literally was walking down the street and I heard a harmonica blaring out of a cool looking bar and I basically said goodbye to who ever I was with and darted off. It was so worth it too. It was a two man blues group with a singer-harmonica player and a slide guitarist. I had seen anyone play slide guitar before so it was a cool experience for me.
The next day we went to Marseille. Marseille is a huge and beautiful beach city on the coast. It's further west than Nice and Cannes. Very old as well and it was one of the hardest hit cities during world war 2. Thankfully, a lot of the old buildings remain. It was wonderful. You just can't the sweeping ocean views anywhere else. It was all very majestic. We saw some very cool art there as well. There was a collection of Italian renaissance paintings done by lesser known artists of that era. It was very fascinating to see these other works that were being done at the same time as ''the greats''
The next day we traveled home by way of Saint Rèmy de Provence and Avignon. Saint Rèmy de Provence is the city that Van Gogh lived just outside of and we got to go to the house he lived in. It was really beautiful there. one of the cool things they did was they would post paintings he did right next to the real life subject of the painting. It was facinating to see his unique perspective on things.
Avignon was a very interesting city, and it was the only one where I totally lost my bearings. Generally I have a good sense of navigation, but at one point I realized that without our guide, I would be completely lost forever. I had no idea of where anything was. Luckily, we had a great guide who fearlessly led us into many museums and architectural wonders of Provence.
I'll try to post more detailed and specific captions on each photo once they're uploaded so you can gain more insight into my Provincial voyage
now we're back and getting ready for classes to start next week. There are a few more orientation events, but they all seem like fun things so I'm excited.
I may start writing more frequently now because there is so much happening in a week that it's hard to remember it all. But, as of right now, let's just stay on a weekly basis.
À bien-tôt!
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Chapter 5 part 1: The Strike and Montmartre.
Finally, the experience has begun. Last Thursday was our first day of orientation and finally the Sarah Lawrence College people all got to meet the students from the other colleges. The majority of them come from Claremont, California, but there are a few people from elsewhere. It's a good group.
But, I'm sort of getting ahead of myself. There were several days before then un accounted for.
Well in those days, nothing terribly exciting in terms of events, but I met some cool people.
On Monday night I met up with a girl from our program and a friend of hers who is here with another program. We went to a bar in th latin quarter and had a drink and then walked around in the rain for a while looking for this jazz place. Alas, it was nowhere to be found. (but I WILL find it) After that I went to my friend Katherine's apartment that she's sharing with a friend of hers and we had some wine and laughs. Good evening.
The next day on Tuesday, Katherine, her friend, and I all went up to Montmartre and the Sacré Coeur. What a gorgeous view from that hilltop. really stunning. And then to walk around the neighborhood of Montmartre was really pretty. There were a lot of touristy places, but just the architecture and the beauty around counteracted all of the touristy BS. And then we descended into Paris' red light district.How did we know? well when the amount of strip clubs and sex shops exceed the amount of restaurants and shops, you have a good idea. Personally, I''m not a red light district kind of person, and I have no desire to be. But it was cool to see the Moulin Rouge, so that's something I guess.
The day we went to Montmartre was the day of ''la greve'' which means Strike. All of the metro trains were running at about half capacity, and the express RER trains were not even open. You couldn't even walk into the station. Why? The French government is trying to raise the retirement age to 62. I know, OUTRAGEOUS! (please note sarcasm) but nevertheless, it was something we had to deal with that day, and it was an ORDEAL.
We get into the metro station from the red light district and go the the platform. the platform is full of people (mostly ''refreshed'' looking business men who I imagine partook in the benefits that the red light district has to offer) then the train pulls up and it also is jammed packed with people. We literally could not get on the train. we had to let it pass. Not just once but at least 4 times. Finally Katherine, but her friend and I were still left standing at the station. Eventually what we had to do was to go back in the other direction a stop, get on the train there and then ride it back. Not a fun time standing for 45 minutes squished together by about 50 French people while you travel all the way across town back to your room. Needless to say, I stayed in the rest of the night.
But aside from those events, the most interesting things that have happened have been the meeting of people. I've finally met a French person! her name is Hannah and she is très chouette! She's very good at english as well as french so she makes a good person to speak to for practice. We get a long quite nicely and I believe that this is the start of une bonne amité.
Okay, so that brings us to Thursday, which is the start of Orientation!
which I will finish tomorrow, because it is not very late here and I have an 8:30am meeting tomorrow!
I will tell you tales of crazy latin quarter nights tomorrow!
Wells
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Chapter 4: In the beginning...
Well, I finally made it.
my last few days in the US were wonderful. On Sunday night, we had a party for myself and my little sister who turned 16. It was really nice and it was a great send off. Then I got on the train for about 12 hours or so and then arrived in NYC for a few days. It was great to see all of my SLC friends one last time before I left for the whole year. Then Wednesday was the big day. Got there and through security just in time. No sooner had I approached my gate then they started calling out the boarding. Then, after watching date night, an episode of How I Met Your Mother, and the beginnings of both The Ghostwriter and Wolfman, I arrived at Charles de Gaulle at 7:30 in the morning, Paris time.
and what a first few days it's been.
I arrived to my room and immediately released my luggage upon it.
It's about twice the size of my last room and the view from my window over looks a garden out back!
After I got unpacked, sort of, I walked around the 14th district where I live. It's really nice. Quiet, but it's close to places that aren't so quiet(aka the Latin quarter!) I found a boulangerie and bought this really awesome sandwich. it had ham, sundried tomatoes, and I think dates or some kind or sweet raisin-esque type thing. It was really quite good so with baguette in hand, I strolled lazily along the Parisian streets. Walking along the streets of Paris is different than any other city because there are always beautiful things or people to notice and appreciate. It truly is a city of beauty.
Now, before I tell an interesting anecdote, some relevant background information is needed.
relevant interlude
One of the things I read about in my French culture guide, French or Foe is something that the author calls "the look." It's when you're walking down the street and you catch the eye of a beautiful member of what ever sex you're attracted to and you have that 3 second fiery romance as you pass by each other. I read about it, and sure enough, women here often return a gaze, and when they do it is like nothing else. And I still have a memory of each girl that I've shared this moment with. It's all in the eyes. However, with great power comes great responsibility...
when last we left our hero...
I was walking back to my room from where ever it was I had decided to turn around on my walk, when I passed by, what I guess was a school. I couldn't' tell what kind of school it was, but there were some attractive girls standing around so I decided to practice "the look." as I passed by a group of these students, I flashed them a glance, then kept walking. The entire group went quiet and stared at me. I walked on, super proud of myself that I had stunned an entire group of girls into silence. suddenly I hear cries of "HEY SEXY! SEXY!" Now I'm feeling pretty proud of myself, naturally, but I played it cool and kept on walking. Then I hear the clicking of heels behind me. I turn around and I've been cornered by three french girls. they start talking to me and asking me if I had a girl friend and how old I was. "I'm 20 I said" and then, in a stern tone, I asked them how old they were. there was a pause. "oh..18, Yeah. 18 we're 18" "Vraiment?" aka: Bullshit. My guess was they were 17 at the oldest and possibly in middle school at the youngest. nonetheless, I was plesant with them and eventually went on my way, feeling incredibly flattered. but let this be a lesson for you all : Have fun, but be careful where you use the look.
On a better note, later that evening in my dorm there was a group of appropriately aged girls standing around, and I stunned them into silence as well. Victory is mine.
well, enough of that.
On Saturday I got lost for my first time. I was walking to try to find Reid Hall, the building where I'll be taking my Sarah Lawrence classes. I google-mapped it and everything before I left, but since I don't have a printer, I was going by my memory of the computer screen, and after a certain point, I couldn't remember which way to turn. I must have walked around Ried Hall at least two or three times before I finally found it. It's a nice building and while I was there I had one of my first French victories. I spoke to the Sarah Lawrence people there entirely in French! Like for a long time, and it was an actual conversation! Those summer classes really paid off.
Later that night I went out with my friend Katherine and her friends Lucy and Matt and we went to a couple of cool clubs, ate some great food, and met some locals! Fun times.
Saturday was my sight seeing day. I took the train to Notre Dame and went inside there for a while. I think Notre Dame is my favorite Parisian place. even though it's a huge tourist attraction, it somehow maintains it's mystique and reverence. When i'm at Notre Dame, I'm beyond being in a church, I'm in a holy place. A church is simply a reminder of a organized structure that has been imposing its will on others with violence and misimformation. Notre Dame, however, is a place of god. When I'm there I forget about the holy wars, the crazy zealots, and the corrupt system. I just know that that building was created so that people could all come together to share what they perceived at the time to be god's love. And perhaps because it's open to the public, the building itself has maintained an certain aura of openness. Even though it is a catholic church, there just seems to be a space for others there as well. While I was there, I went to the shrine of Saint George. Not being well versed in Saintly lore, I don't know what Saint George is the patron saint of, but because of the story of the dragon I have always associated him with courage. so while I was inside this great hall of worship, at a place dedicated for courage, I prayed. I'm not even sure who I was praying to. Perhaps I was praying to myself, that I could rise up against the dragons and other demons that have haunted me over the years and finally slay them. After my prayer, I payed an offering and lit a candle, a symbol of the light I needed. I hope to make some kind of routine out of this, my own little spiritual time. and what place is better to do this than Notre Dame?
I walked around the hall a few more times, taking pictures of the stained glass with my camera (link to photo album at the end!) and then I walked out into the bright sunlight.
And I mean bright. Right before I left the US, I broke the awesome pair of Faux-Banns I bought at the beach on the cheap, and had yet to replace them. Luckily, Notre Dame is a touristy area so there were beaucoup de magazins where I could buy des lunettes du soleil. Blue Faux Banns! Awesome! now for the rest of my walk.
I start off on the south bank of the river headed went toward the other main monuments, and I walked by all of the old book vendors and art sellers on the shore. I definitely want to go back and browse some more when I have a better sense of my budget and expenses.
From there I walked all the way to the place du concord, then up l'avenue de Champs Elysees to l'Arc de Triomphe. It must have been some special day because under the Arc, there were a bunch of important looking people and a large band playing the french national anthem. Perhaps an ambassador visiting? It was just a very cool thing to hear.
But I walked on. I walked down one of the streets of the Étoile (the large traffic circle the goes around the Arch and shoots in many different directions. On a map it looks like a large star, so they call it the Étoile, the french word for star) back south towards the river. once I got to the avenue of president Herbert Hoover (yes, they have streets named after OUR presidents.) I turned right onto it towards the Trocadero, building with a huge plateau and water feature in front of the Eiffel Tower. la Tour Eiffel is always impressing. I still have yet to go up inside it, but I will at some point.
But after walking all of that way, I was incredibly tired. I found the nearest train station, zipped back home, changed clothes for dinner, went to a lovely restaurant, had one of the finest meals I've ever tasted, then went back and went to bed...
almost
on my way back from dinner, I ran into a bunch of people from California that are staying in my dorm. They were all about to go out for the night, so I joined them. We went out to this pretty cool bar called The Panic Room. the main reason I had a good time, or rather that I learned from the experience, was that I got to how bar interaction, and meeting and talking to people there works. Little ol' nice guy, home-schooled, southern boy me hasn't set foot into an actual bar in his life. But now, suddenly there's no drinking age and the sky's the limit! I was a bit of a wall flower that night however, I feel like I learned something, which is all anyone can ask for. One of my dragons this year is shyness. Now I am simply gaining the armor and swords with which to defeat it.
And that brings us to Sunday, which has been an incredibly lazy day. With the exception of the fact that I found a practice room! the piano is kinda sucky, but it's better than nothing and I discovered my own Dr. John style blues lick today! I'm definitely getting better at this whole blues thing. There's a blues club near by, perhaps I could make a go at playing there sometime?
Photos of my escapades can be found here or just look on my facebook!
http://www.facebook.com/photos.php?id=511683139#!/album.php?aid=280554&id=511683139
next week marks the beginning of orientation and the gathering together of all the SLC Paris students!
abreebareeebareeebareebareeeba that's all folks!
See you next week.
my last few days in the US were wonderful. On Sunday night, we had a party for myself and my little sister who turned 16. It was really nice and it was a great send off. Then I got on the train for about 12 hours or so and then arrived in NYC for a few days. It was great to see all of my SLC friends one last time before I left for the whole year. Then Wednesday was the big day. Got there and through security just in time. No sooner had I approached my gate then they started calling out the boarding. Then, after watching date night, an episode of How I Met Your Mother, and the beginnings of both The Ghostwriter and Wolfman, I arrived at Charles de Gaulle at 7:30 in the morning, Paris time.
and what a first few days it's been.
I arrived to my room and immediately released my luggage upon it.
After I got unpacked, sort of, I walked around the 14th district where I live. It's really nice. Quiet, but it's close to places that aren't so quiet(aka the Latin quarter!) I found a boulangerie and bought this really awesome sandwich. it had ham, sundried tomatoes, and I think dates or some kind or sweet raisin-esque type thing. It was really quite good so with baguette in hand, I strolled lazily along the Parisian streets. Walking along the streets of Paris is different than any other city because there are always beautiful things or people to notice and appreciate. It truly is a city of beauty.
Now, before I tell an interesting anecdote, some relevant background information is needed.
relevant interlude
One of the things I read about in my French culture guide, French or Foe is something that the author calls "the look." It's when you're walking down the street and you catch the eye of a beautiful member of what ever sex you're attracted to and you have that 3 second fiery romance as you pass by each other. I read about it, and sure enough, women here often return a gaze, and when they do it is like nothing else. And I still have a memory of each girl that I've shared this moment with. It's all in the eyes. However, with great power comes great responsibility...
when last we left our hero...
I was walking back to my room from where ever it was I had decided to turn around on my walk, when I passed by, what I guess was a school. I couldn't' tell what kind of school it was, but there were some attractive girls standing around so I decided to practice "the look." as I passed by a group of these students, I flashed them a glance, then kept walking. The entire group went quiet and stared at me. I walked on, super proud of myself that I had stunned an entire group of girls into silence. suddenly I hear cries of "HEY SEXY! SEXY!" Now I'm feeling pretty proud of myself, naturally, but I played it cool and kept on walking. Then I hear the clicking of heels behind me. I turn around and I've been cornered by three french girls. they start talking to me and asking me if I had a girl friend and how old I was. "I'm 20 I said" and then, in a stern tone, I asked them how old they were. there was a pause. "oh..18, Yeah. 18 we're 18" "Vraiment?" aka: Bullshit. My guess was they were 17 at the oldest and possibly in middle school at the youngest. nonetheless, I was plesant with them and eventually went on my way, feeling incredibly flattered. but let this be a lesson for you all : Have fun, but be careful where you use the look.
On a better note, later that evening in my dorm there was a group of appropriately aged girls standing around, and I stunned them into silence as well. Victory is mine.
well, enough of that.
On Saturday I got lost for my first time. I was walking to try to find Reid Hall, the building where I'll be taking my Sarah Lawrence classes. I google-mapped it and everything before I left, but since I don't have a printer, I was going by my memory of the computer screen, and after a certain point, I couldn't remember which way to turn. I must have walked around Ried Hall at least two or three times before I finally found it. It's a nice building and while I was there I had one of my first French victories. I spoke to the Sarah Lawrence people there entirely in French! Like for a long time, and it was an actual conversation! Those summer classes really paid off.
Later that night I went out with my friend Katherine and her friends Lucy and Matt and we went to a couple of cool clubs, ate some great food, and met some locals! Fun times.
Saturday was my sight seeing day. I took the train to Notre Dame and went inside there for a while. I think Notre Dame is my favorite Parisian place. even though it's a huge tourist attraction, it somehow maintains it's mystique and reverence. When i'm at Notre Dame, I'm beyond being in a church, I'm in a holy place. A church is simply a reminder of a organized structure that has been imposing its will on others with violence and misimformation. Notre Dame, however, is a place of god. When I'm there I forget about the holy wars, the crazy zealots, and the corrupt system. I just know that that building was created so that people could all come together to share what they perceived at the time to be god's love. And perhaps because it's open to the public, the building itself has maintained an certain aura of openness. Even though it is a catholic church, there just seems to be a space for others there as well. While I was there, I went to the shrine of Saint George. Not being well versed in Saintly lore, I don't know what Saint George is the patron saint of, but because of the story of the dragon I have always associated him with courage. so while I was inside this great hall of worship, at a place dedicated for courage, I prayed. I'm not even sure who I was praying to. Perhaps I was praying to myself, that I could rise up against the dragons and other demons that have haunted me over the years and finally slay them. After my prayer, I payed an offering and lit a candle, a symbol of the light I needed. I hope to make some kind of routine out of this, my own little spiritual time. and what place is better to do this than Notre Dame?
I walked around the hall a few more times, taking pictures of the stained glass with my camera (link to photo album at the end!) and then I walked out into the bright sunlight.
And I mean bright. Right before I left the US, I broke the awesome pair of Faux-Banns I bought at the beach on the cheap, and had yet to replace them. Luckily, Notre Dame is a touristy area so there were beaucoup de magazins where I could buy des lunettes du soleil. Blue Faux Banns! Awesome! now for the rest of my walk.
I start off on the south bank of the river headed went toward the other main monuments, and I walked by all of the old book vendors and art sellers on the shore. I definitely want to go back and browse some more when I have a better sense of my budget and expenses.
From there I walked all the way to the place du concord, then up l'avenue de Champs Elysees to l'Arc de Triomphe. It must have been some special day because under the Arc, there were a bunch of important looking people and a large band playing the french national anthem. Perhaps an ambassador visiting? It was just a very cool thing to hear.
But I walked on. I walked down one of the streets of the Étoile (the large traffic circle the goes around the Arch and shoots in many different directions. On a map it looks like a large star, so they call it the Étoile, the french word for star) back south towards the river. once I got to the avenue of president Herbert Hoover (yes, they have streets named after OUR presidents.) I turned right onto it towards the Trocadero, building with a huge plateau and water feature in front of the Eiffel Tower. la Tour Eiffel is always impressing. I still have yet to go up inside it, but I will at some point.
But after walking all of that way, I was incredibly tired. I found the nearest train station, zipped back home, changed clothes for dinner, went to a lovely restaurant, had one of the finest meals I've ever tasted, then went back and went to bed...
almost
on my way back from dinner, I ran into a bunch of people from California that are staying in my dorm. They were all about to go out for the night, so I joined them. We went out to this pretty cool bar called The Panic Room. the main reason I had a good time, or rather that I learned from the experience, was that I got to how bar interaction, and meeting and talking to people there works. Little ol' nice guy, home-schooled, southern boy me hasn't set foot into an actual bar in his life. But now, suddenly there's no drinking age and the sky's the limit! I was a bit of a wall flower that night however, I feel like I learned something, which is all anyone can ask for. One of my dragons this year is shyness. Now I am simply gaining the armor and swords with which to defeat it.
And that brings us to Sunday, which has been an incredibly lazy day. With the exception of the fact that I found a practice room! the piano is kinda sucky, but it's better than nothing and I discovered my own Dr. John style blues lick today! I'm definitely getting better at this whole blues thing. There's a blues club near by, perhaps I could make a go at playing there sometime?
Photos of my escapades can be found here or just look on my facebook!
http://www.facebook.com/photos.php?id=511683139#!/album.php?aid=280554&id=511683139
next week marks the beginning of orientation and the gathering together of all the SLC Paris students!
abreebareeebareeebareebareeeba that's all folks!
See you next week.
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